Character 97 - Saiki Tatsumi

So this character – beyond the difficulties in my work life – posed some really onerous challenges. The high intelligence, being born at a time of power, and having mystic as an influence screamed for her to be a caster of some kind. Being a follower of the Black Butterfly made we want to make her a mute. The problem is that being able to cast spells without speaking is exceedingly hard. I had to search high and low for ways to add silent spell to her spells at a reduced cost, and there aren’t many of them.

Looking through a number of threads I found that the oracle curse “deaf” gave free silent spell to all spells. Finding a way to get the oracle curse on a caster that wasn’t an oracle – because it didn’t fit what I was looking for – was no easy task. I’m not a fan of variant multiclassing, although one could have built the character using VMC oracle, but I did find the one archetype that gives a curse; PactWizard from Haunted Heroes Handbook, not to be confused pact wizard from the Familiar Folio.

Admittedly this will hamstring the character till level 5 when she can choose the deaf curse, but I’m ok with that for the story purposes. I do like that the pact wizard gets a witch’s patron and I thought that stars would be appropriate for a god who was literally created by first being a constellation. For this character, you need to take silent spell at first level, but she’ll retrain it at fifth when she no longer needs it due to the oracle curse.

The exploiter wizard archetype stacks nicely with the pact wizard archetype and will give her some versatility that I think she needs. One of the exploits she can take is dimensional slide, which I think is definitely something someone who worships a goddess of space and distance would take, so I went with that as well.

Saiki Tatsumi

The dangers of The Worldwound abound leaving many homeless and emotionally scarred. As the borders of Mendev slowly recede the Demon hordes take prisoners from the border towns. There are many families that either came to fight the abyssal incursion or followers who traveled with these crusaders from across the face of Golarion. The Saiki family arrived with such warriors from their homeland of Tian but they were taken prisoner by demons when their outpost was sacked.

Saiki Okada and his wife Setsuko saw their lord torn up before their very eyes before they were carried off into the night. Setsuko was pregnant and Okada knew he must help his family escape. On the night that the twins were to be born three of the planets aligned, causing chaos in an already chaotic land. Okada took this as an opportunity to help his wife make their escape.

They traveled through the night led by the light of the stars, although one star itself moved across the sky like no other they had ever seen. They stopped for the night huddled at the border of a desolate forest, which is where Setsuko gave birth. In the morning they were found by outriders from the one liberated town in the demon-infested region, Gundrun.

Although Gundrun is far from the major loci of demon activity, it isn’t always safe. Some believe that there are demonic agents living in the town itself. On occasion, a demon raid will fall upon the town but it is usually repelled. Sadly not everyone survives, and Tatsumi and Chiyu lost their mother when they were only ten. This left a scar on both children with Tatsumi retreating into herself, barely speaking. Her sister Chiyu went the opposite route and began to act out violently.

When the two girls turned twelve and started going through puberty it became evident why they had processed their grief in different ways. The blood that ran through their veins came from two different ancestries. Somewhere along their bloodline a dalliance with the elemental must have happened as Chiyu began to show signs of the fiery blood of the efreeti in her veins while Tatsumi manifest some of the djinn bloodline as a sylph.

It is here that the path of the girls truly diverged. Driven by emotion, Chiyu was drawn to the often savage ways of the Kellid of Gundrun, who descended from the people of Sarkoris, which is now known as the Worldwoud. Tatsumi again took to a life of quiet contemplation, which attracted the notice of a traveler known as The Voiceless Monk.

The Voiceless Monk was a disciple of the powerful Empyreal Lord called the Black Butterfly. Born deaf, he never truly learned to speak, but later in life a pact with the being known as Desna’s Shadow saw him develop arcane powers. Although Tatsumi was not deaf, or truly mute, her mental block on speaking drew him to her. Her training was difficult -- learning to cast spells without speaking didn’t come as easily to her as it did her master.

Tatsumi still had the urges of an adolescent to deal with as well. Although she was quiet, that didn’t mean she didn’t desire the affection of other people. Being unwilling to speak made these relationships more difficult but it didn’t stop her from trying. Sadly, abandonment issues from the death of her mother meant she often used coercion to keep her partners from leaving her. This was a tactic she would secretly regret as she got older.

Although she and her sister took different paths – Chiyu channeling her elemental nature into a bloodrage – they both held strong to a need for fairness and justice. The two saw the injustice in a world that would take their mother; in a world that would allow demons to wipe out an entire country and its peoples. They sought to help those who seem to have been treated unfairly, whether by the world itself, by people, or even by unjust laws.

So there you have it. Yes, this is not the most optimized character at the beginning. You really eat a hefty penalty by willingly not using sound to cast spells, but to me it’s worth it. And even when you get the cure, the deaf penalty is pretty hefty. I wish there was a mute curse that was similar, but I will take what I can get. The Black Butterfly is, after all, the patron of both the deaf and the mute.

What class did your version of this sylph gravitate toward? Who was her sister? How did her mother die? Why did she choose The Black Butterfly as a patron, or was she chosen?

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Character 24 - Kaeshu Weepingoak

A sylph from a Garundi family, incredibly tough, very smart, and likable. So what class do we choose for the Lawful Good worshiper of Iomedae? Well there is a sylph-only wizard archetype called the Wind Listener and I think that fits well with the stats and the other rolls on the background table. But I’m gonna throw the wizard table roll into the mix.

Wizard Training: [Gifted Pride] Your affinity for magic has made you somewhat crass and arrogant, though some find your blunt disposition charming or worthy of respect. The air of superiority surrounding you is palpable and allows you to use your intellect to cow others at times when lesser individuals might barely get a word in.

Possible traits

(Trait) Bruising Intellect

Kaeshu (Ka-EE-shoo) Weepingoak

The fight against the demons in the Worldwound have brought holy warriors from around the world to the land of Mendev. Kelesh knights for the Dawnflower, Varundi martial arts Masters, Tian dragon sorcerers, and even warriors for the lands of the Garundi. Kaeshu’s family came with the warriors of their homeland as cooks and settled in Mendev near the star keep where their lords could be close to the battle.

Kaeshu was born on their lord’s homestead farm while he was crusading in the worldwound. Her father watched on as her mother gave birth near their meager residence, beneath a sagging old oak tree that sometimes wailed like a keening child when the wind gusted through its branches. When the child was born with a full head of sky-blue hair, they knew there would be something special about her. The blood of the air elemental had not been seen in the clan for many generations, but it was not unheard of and stories of such prevailed in the family’s oral history.

As Kaeshu aged she began to show signs of affinity to the wind, even so much as to develop cantrips on her own though she had no formal wizardly training. She was the object of speculation among her peers, but Kaeshu knew that she was destined for greater things and never shied away from saying so. When she was of age, she apprenticed with the wizards who used their magic to protect the borders and the Star Keep itself.

During her tenure with the wizards Kaeshu often indulged her compulsion to prove she was the best, and was constantly challenging the other apprentices to one contest or another. She usually stacked the deck in her favor and came out on top time and again. Her need to prove herself meant she never backed down from any challenge and when one of the other peasant children challenged her to a test of knowledge she had to accept. When she realized the boy might be smarter than her, she secretly used her magic to steal the information she lacked and win the contest.

Kaeshu’s pride and sense of superiority was seen as a good thing by her teachers, it meant she was focused and determined. She took naturally to spells dealing with wind and knowledge, however, her pride again would change the course of her life. A traveler came to the school, a man known only as the wandering sage, and he sought out the best of the school students. He tested them all and Kaeshu, as usual, came out on top. But the final challenge was to face the sage. The sylph was not only soundly defeated, she was humiliated in front of the entire gathering.

In her shame Kaeshu left the school and her home. With nowhere else to go, she followed the wandering sage. She didn’t go directly with him but trailed his route as he traveled, often reaching the destination a day or two later. She would then spend her time trying to discover what knowledge he uncovered before her. On occasion, when she wasn’t careful, she would cross paths with the wanderer. Though he should have been startled by her presence, he would simply ask her what she had learned on her journey. It wasn’t until their last meeting that he told her about the wind; that to become what she was truly meant to be, she must change like the wind.

Decades later Kaeshu brought all her knowledge home. Her father lived well into his 100s and spends his remaining days under the weepingoak, feeling the breeze. Her older sister has become the matron of the family with many sons and daughters now living on the old farmstead. But the wind, it calls to Kaeshu, and she only comes to visit in spurts. Her latest calling has been to travel with the warriors of her family’s lord into the worldwound, for even there she can hear the voice of the wind.

And there we have the sylph wind listener. Taking the time to craft a story that incorporates all the aspects chosen is no small feat. If you’ve enjoyed meeting Kaeshu Weepingoak then consider becoming a patron of the CRB here. Also remember to follow us on twitter @SimonSezCRB. If you’re afraid of missing a beat, head to the sidebar and sign up for email notification, and be one of the first to know when a new posting hits the CRB. This is especially good if you’re finding the CRB on reddit as I can only post to a given reddit once a week. And finally there is a tumblr for the CRB, if you’d to see some more frequent musings from yours truly.

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Character Twelve: Lung Bingci - Ratfolk

This was a tough one. First off where to go with a class. Investigator, Rogue and Wizard all seemed like good choices. A few people had suggested bard even with the charisma of only 13. But the other part was lore. I like to build my characters based on the lore of the world as well and I had to look at what little was already said about the Ratfolk here. And since I went with Tian Xia as the location I really wanted to use the Chinese analog stuff and I had to look up the equivalent of a Duke in China. But that’s the kind of research I like to do when building a character.

Only once in their existence have the Ratfolk been known to have a kingdom of their own. The empire of Diguo-Dashu which was driven back into the caverns of Sekamina after their deadly but failed war against the Imperial Lung Wa of Tian Xia. The Diguo-Dashu took dozens of cities and so when the empire was sealed back up into the Darklands many stragglers were left without a home, enemies of the state at worst, outcasts at best.

It was many years before the Ratfolk themselves began to create their own communities once more. Longer still before they had a home to call their own on the surface. In the Tengu controlled region of Kawnlai, the ruined City of the Whistling Sword became home to many descendants of the exiled Ratfolk of Diguo-Dashu. It was a start to make a new life.

The city in ruins was mostly disparate groups scrabbling over resources. Infighting among the Rats was common as many factions sought control. Finally war, if you could call it that, between a half dozen of the bigger families and organizations. When the dust settled Li Bingci, his family and allies stood victorious. Li claimed the title of Jueyin (roughly equivalent of Duke) and was recognized by the Tengu of the region.

Li Bingci had one son, Lung Bingci, heir to his throne and also a target. The younger Bingci was sent to live with his uncle outside of the City of Whispering Swords. Uncle Jin Po taught at one of the Academies in the human controlled lands of Tian Xia. Li sent his son not only to ensure the safety of the heir but also to educate his son in the art of magic, something the elder Bingci believed would help cement the power of his families rule.

Li’s early development was not easy he thought himself better than those who surrounded him. He would cheat his fellow students out of anything they were foolishly willing to bargain with. The younger Bingci thought because of his status that rules did not apply to him the way they did to the lesser students. This was very soon beaten out of him by Uncle Po when he became aware of his nephews activities.

Lin Po taught a very specialized school of magic. And Li was, not originally willingly, always at his side to learn. Many of the masters taught of the elements but Master Po taught of the non-element, the void. The connection between the heavens and the earths, the spiritual nature of all existence. Through these teachings Li Bingci learned how everything had a connection, even those of noble birth and those not. His duty when he would take the reins of power from his father would be to keep the City of Whispering Swords connected to the lands of the Tengu, to keep his people connected to each other and to create a balance between the heavens and the Ratfolk.

Does this fit with what you would have done? Excited about seeing a thriving city of Ratfolk in Tian Xia?

As ever we move forward. First person to post a race (Core or featured) that will be the race I use from my next randomly rolled character.